New Look Canberra Quilters Inc. Website

** Connecting the Blog has moved to the Canberra Quilters Inc. website **

The Canberra Quilters Inc. website has had a makeover and is now the home to all things Canberra Quilters Inc.

You can now directly email members of the Committee by clicking on the email links on this page.

You can read all about the Special Interest Groups, workshops and see what's coming up on the Canberra Quilters Inc. calendar.

You can now also sign up to a new monthly email newsletter by clicking on this link.  This newsletter is not, and will not, replace the quarterly newsletter, Connecting Threads, which members receive as part of their annual membership fees.


The new website has been designed to display member's work and is currently displaying a selection of winning quilts from this year's Members' Exhibition.  This will be updated regularly to give all of our members a chance to show case their work.

Connecting the Blog has moved and can now be found here: Connecting the Blog

We hope you love the new look!

Website Maintenance

****** UPDATE *****

 The Canberra Quilters website and emails are back online.  (insert happy dance here)

If you have any issues accessing the website or emailing a member of committee please let me know.

Thanks for your patience and understanding during this time.

********************

Just a quick note from your Webmaster:

This weekend Canberra Quilters will be performing some maintenance on their website.  During this time the Canberra Quilters website will be unavailable and so will any Canberra Quilters emails (those ending in @canberraquilters.org.au).

We apologize for the inconvenience in the meantime you may access the temporary Canberra Quilters website by clicking this link.  It's a work in progress, but all the important information is contained there.

Again, we apologize for any inconvenience.  Thank you.

Rowmakers next meeting on 9 October

The next meeting of Rowmakers is on 9 October from 10 am until 12 noon.
Here is a message from co-ordinator Joanne:

Hi ladies

We know have our second last set of INGREDIENTS :-

. STRIPES (Audrey Cureton)

. APPLIQUE/REVERSE APPLIQUE (Shirley Rollins).

They shouldn't be too challenging.

Next month we get our last pair of ingredients. It's up to you whether you do 8 or 9 blocks/items.

The November meeting will be our Show-and-Tell. Hopefully with a prize to be drawn from everyone who brings along their 8 or 9 blocks/items. And December is just a party. Next meeting we'll discuss whether we should plan anything apart from eating.

We've also started talking about next year. If you have any ideas please come along and share them.

Until then, have fun,

Joanne 

QFO Working bee- 8 Oct

Quilts for Others are having their next working bee on 8 October from 10 am until 2.30 pm.
Come along to help make quilts for charity - morning and afternoon tea provided, BYO lunch.
Here are some of our members in action at the recent exhibition:

Brenda is explaining free-motion quilting

Donna is piecing blocks

Jakki is quilting

Living Colour! Call for Entries

CQ member Brenda Gael Smith is curating another travelling textile art exhibition in 2014/2015 that will premiere at the Australasian Quilt Convention in 2014 and will also be on display at the Creative Textile Show in Canberra.  All textile artists are invited to submit an entry exploring the theme Living Colour! Each work will be in a 100x40cm (L x W) vertical format and up to 30 works may be selected. To submit an entry, please review the Conditions of Entry and complete the Online Entry Form. The closing date for entries is 31 January 2014.

Correction: Tentmakers of Cairo

Canberra Quilters would like to advise that there will be NO EFTPOS facilities at the Egyptian Tentmaker appearances at the Friendly Friday meeting on 27 September, between 10 am and 12 noon, or at the evening meeting on 3 October.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Egyptian tent maker Ekramy Hanafy in action. Photo: Graham Tidy

You can read more about the Egyptian Tentmaker's visit to Canberra here at the Canberra Times article.

Tentmakers of Cairo

The Tentmakers of Cairo are coming to Canberra as part of the "Windows to the World" event, celebrating the Centenary of Canberra.
The Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt will be open on the weekend of 28-29 September, between 10 am and 3 pm, with the work of the Tentmakers on display, as well as lectures and demonstrations. Bookings for the lectures and demonstrations can be made through windowstotheworld.com.au

Fragment of Birds in the Marsh

As well as this, the Tentmakers ( Hany El Sayed and Ekramy Hanafy) will be at the Friendly Friday meeting on 27 September, between 10 am and 12 noon and at the evening meeting on 3 October where they will give a short talk. At both these meetings small pieces of work and two publications will be available for purchase (EFTPOS, Cash or Card only).

The Tentmakers are also conducting workshops for Canberra Quilters on 30 September, 1-3 October. These workshops are booked out.

Sponsors for these events include Bernina, Jenny Bowker, Clare Ayling, Canberra Quilters and the Egyptian Embassy.

Small Japanese Projects Meeting - 25 September

Meeting is from 10 am until 12 noon. Here is a message from convener Wendy:

Hi everyone

Sashiko is what we are looking at this month.

I have been having a lovely time selecting magazines, patterns and books to bring to inspire you. We'll look at both machine and hand-stitched sashiko, and we'll look at ways to use finished sashiko pieces.

Bring your sashiko along, whether finished pieces/quilts, or clothing, or kits or pre marked fabric that you haven't yet started. Some of you have brought sashiko pieces to previous meetings - please bring them again.

If you made the small kimono project Edith demonstrated last month, I'd love to see them, too.

The aim is for you to go away inspired!

See you next week.

Modern Quilt Group Meeting - Thursday 12 September

GnomeAngel's Scrap Vomit

 Tonight at the Modern Quilt Group Meeting we'll be demonstrating how to make a "slab block".  (You can read more about them here:  Dining Room Empire)  If you'd like to make your own slab blocks at the meeting be sure to bring all the supplies you'll need.  (There are some sewing machines available, but these are limited.)

We're also going to be swapping 2.5" scrap squares, a la the Scrap Vomit quilt.  (You can read more about them here: GnomeAngel). Even if you don't want to make a Scrap Vomit quilt the 2.5" squares are so handy for so many different quilts!

If you are keen to do this, please bring along sets (however many you want) of 49 different 2.5 inch squares. This is enough to make an A block, or 49 hexagons, or 1 simple 14 inch block! 

Hope to see you there!

Collection of Annual Members Exhibition Certificates and/or Prizes

The Annual Members Exhibition Awards Night was held in September and it was a wonderful evening. It was so great to see the winning quilts again and see the big smiles on the faces of all the children that entered.

If you were a place getter or prize winner and were unable to attend the Awards Night to collect your certification and/or prize(s) never fear.

I will have the certificates/prize(s) with me at the following meetings for collection:

Modern Quilting Group Meeting - Thursday 12 September
Members Meeting - Thursday 3 October

If you're unable to attend these meetings and would like your certificate/prize mailed to you please drop me an email at angiewilson[at]iinet[dot]net[au] and I will organize collection or delivery with you.

Wonderful Wednesday Meeting - 18 September

At the Wonderful Wednesday meeting on 18 September the special show & tell is your "other" creative pursuits. Members are encouraged to bring and show the other things they make - knitting, crocheting, beading, embroidery, book binding, painting. The talents in our group are many and varied and we want to see what other things you make..

This is a sit & sew meeting, held in the hall at the Cook Community Hub. Meeting runs from 9.30 am until 12.30 pm.
Afterwards there is drop-in in the CQ room until 4 pm. The library is open straight after the meeting.

Rowmakers Meeting on 11 September - have you caught up?

The next meeting of the ROWmakers design group is on 11 September. A number of people indicated at the last meeting that they were in catch-up mode with their monthly design responses.

The elements drawn out at the last meeting were neutral and diamonds/ hexagons.

Here is a recap of what combinations have come up so far:

1. Green & circles/curves
2. Blue & geometric (squares, rectangles, triangles) 
3. Yellow & Celtic/ stained glass
4. Black & embellished/ embroidered
5. Purple & crazy piecing
6. Pink & pictorial/ scenic

2013 Exhibition Awards Ceremony Tonight

Tonight's monthly meeting is the Awards Ceremony for the 2013 Annual Members Exhibition.  It's a great way to revisit the quilts of the Exhibition and maybe even see some of them for the first time if you missed seeing the Exhibition.

The meeting starts at 7:30pm and is at the Cook Hall.

If you're thinking about joining Canberra Quilters the monthly meetings are a great way to get a sample of the work being done by the Guild, inspired and meet some lovely people.  Do come along!

Quilting Sale Day - 7 September

Don't forget the second Sale Day this year on Saturday 7 September from 1.30 until 4 pm, in the CQ room at the Cook Community Hub.
Members will have fabric, thread, tools and gadgets, books and magazines for sale. These are good quality items that are no longer needed by their owners.  Fill the colour gaps in your stash, find that gadget that makes life so much easier and get some bargain books and magazines.

Yes- it is the date of the Federal Election, so why not vote and then continue on to the sale!

The Last of the Flyer Competition Entries

The Exhibition may be behind us but there's still more flyer photos to share.

These photos come from Di Ballantyne.  Di took our little flyer on a big adventure on board the Trans Siberian Train Trip. The flyer went to Sydney, Singapore, Beijing, Ulan Bataar, Irkutsk (Russia), Moscow and St Petersburg and back via Singapore and Sydney.

"The most isolated was the steppes on Mongolia, the most remote was the ger camp in northern Mongolia, the closest connection (to patchwork and quilting) was the Mongolian Quilt shop I found in Ulan Bataar, and the most distant from Canberra was the Field of Mars Park shot taken in St Petersburg."

We also had 2 more photos from Patricia Branford:

Opposite the Matterhorn. At a place called Rotenboden

The following photos are from Dell Armistead's children:

Thank you to everyone that entered.  Prizes will be awarded at the Thursday 5 September Meeting. 

Presentation Night- 5 September

The upcoming evening meeting will be the night presentations are made to award and prize winners from our recent exhibition. Come along for another view of the quilts and meet some of the makers.

The usual evening meeting activities will also occur - library will be open, show and tell, tea and coffee, raffle and door prizes, name badge draw.

Meeting starts at 7.30 pm in the Cook Community Hub Hall.

Members on show at Mandelson's of Goulburn 31 Aug & 1 Sept

Several members of Canberra Quilters will be showing quilts at Mandelson's of Goulburn this weekend,  31 August and 1 September. These are the members of tACTile and the quilts are part of their recent exhibition, 100,  at the Belconnen Arts Centre.
Claire Ayling, joint owner of Mandelson's, is one of our sponsors through her Bali Batiks fabric business. Here is a message from Claire:

ICONIC EXHIBITION OF ART QUILTS

DIRECT FROM CANBERRA

The tACTile group comprising Jenny Bowker, Dianne Firth, Helen Gray, Beth Miller, with Beth and Trevor Reid working in partnership, are well known throughout Australia and internationally for their innovative art quilts.

They created 100 art quilts to provide a range of perspectives on Canberra as people, place and designed city.

We are fortunate to have 64 of these magnificent art quilts on display in Mandelson’s Ballroom.

                    DOOR DONATION TO CanTeen

HUGE SALE OF FABRICS, THREADS and PATTERNS

Date: Saturday 31^st August and Sunday 1^st September 2013

Times: 10am – 3 pm

Venue: Mandelson’s of Goulburn – 160 Sloane Street Goulburn (corner of Clinton Street)

Goods for Sale:

·         Claire Ayling Bali Batik Fabrics – with a HUGE selection at $10 per metre and remainder at $15 per metre.

·         Julie’s Superior Threads – selling a large selection with MANY on special.

·         Beth Miller Quilts By Pattern – ALL half price

Cash sales only – ATM’S are in walking distance

Morning and Afternoon Tea: served in Mandelson’s glorious Dining Room

Small Japanese projects meeting - 28 August: folded kimono

Here is a message from convener Wendy:

This month Edith is going to show the group how to make a folded kimono. I've included a picture of one - not sure if this is the exact model Edith will demonstrate. 

She may reply to this message giving you details of what's needed. 

Unfortunately I won't be able to make it but I'm sure you'll have an interesting morning. 

Bring along any Japanese goodies you bought at the quilt show. I know I found some lovely things

Connecting Threads via email

Are you interested in receiving the Canberra Quilters' newsletter, Connecting Threads, by email?

If so, you can give your name and email address to Jakki Cashman or use the Contact Us section of the website to indicate that you would like to join the trial group. The committee will  monitor the response, collect any feedback and consider issues associated with emailed newsletters. 

Wonderful Wednesday meeting 21st August: our exhibition quilts

At the Wonderful Wednesday meeting on 21 August the special show & tell is our quilts which were in the recent Annual Exhibition. Please bring along your quilt for everyone to enjoy again.

This is a sit & sew meeting, held in the hall at the Cook Community Hub. Meeting runs from 9.30 am until 12.30 pm.
Afterwards there is drop-in in the CQ room until 4 pm. The library is open straight after the meeting.